Birmingham, Ala. - The UTEP track team wrapped up the first day of competition at the 2014 Conference USA Championships in Birmingham, Ala. on Friday Feb. 28.

Junior Jallycia Pearson kicked off the events for the Miners with a first-place finish in the pentathlon. She finished with a personal best of 3,805 points as she took first place in the 60m hurdles with 8.56 and second in the high jump (1.56m/5-05) and the shot put (11.86m/38-11).

Teammate Aeisha McDavid followed with 3,050 points as she competed in the pentathlon this season.

Freshmen Florence Uwakwe commanded the 400m dash, recording a personal best of 54.35 to take first in the prelims. Uwakwe will compete in the finals tomorrow 1:30 p.m. (MT).

Janice Jackson and Anna-Kay James continued the women’s success as they both qualified for the finals in the 60m hurdles. Jackson finished second overall with a time of 8.24 and James came in third at 8.37. They both will fight for the gold in the 60m hurdles tomorrow at 2:05 p.m. (MT).

On the field Nickevea Wilson posted a mark of 5.75m (18-10.50) in the long jump only securing ninth place and Fayon Gonzales registered 13.78m (45-02.50) in the weight throw.

Leading the men were Anthony Rotich and Elphas Maiyo as they delivered a one-two finish in the 5,000m run. Rotich who posted a finish of 14:32.46 and Maiyo who posted a time of 14:33.34 ran the race with ease as they lapped competitors.

Rotich will be looking to defend his titles in the mile at 1:15 p.m. (MT) and 3000 meters at 3:50 p.m. (MT) on Saturday.

El Paso native Daniel Tarango kept the momentum going as he registered a qualifying time of 1:54.81 in the 800m run. The distance runner will compete for the title tomorrow at 2:50 p.m. (MT).

On the sprints side, Abiola Onakoya and Carnell Horn both posted qualifying times of 48.36 in the 400m dash. Both sprinters will compete in the finals tomorrow at 1:40 p.m. (MT).

Mark Jackson finished second in the 60m dash prelims with a time 6.79 and was followed by teammate Reginald Hinson who posted a personal best of 6.90.

Sophomore Sven Zellner also posted a qualifying time for the Orange and Blue with a first place finish of 8.10 in the 60m hurdle prelims. Zellner is tied for the fastest qualifying time going into the finals.

The men wrapped up the day with gold and bronze finishes in the long jump. Senior Mark Jackson claimed the title with a jump of 7.59m (24-11.00) while sophomore Brandon Moss’s jump of 7.30m (23-11.50) claimed third. They both earned UTEP a combined total of 16 points to put the men’s team in first place with 42 points. The Miners are followed close behind by C-USA newcomer UTSA (38), East Carolina (34.5), Rice (28) and Charlotte (25.5)